English language recaps of Telenovelas... This blog is the love child of Pratie Place.

"We love to mock here, don't mistake it for real hate." -- Chris Ferro
"Come, let us gather together and suffer, sisters and brothers." -- Alice
"This has got to be the sappiest, most mindless piece of crap that Televisa ever came up with!
Yet the recaps are hilarious and priceless!" -- riberajoe

Saturday, March 25, 2017

La Piloto: #14, 3-24-2017: From Rescue To Rumble

There's a meet with The Senator's lawyer set up to invite Los Lucio to join him and expand their narcotrafficking venture into the U.S. The only request is to keep themselves on the down low. (Good luck with that.) It's their invite to grander things with the Las Sombras Narco organization. They are in and get an advance to help set up their bigger and better little air fleet and airfield in Villa Antigua.

At the same time, YO!landa has the blueprints of the hospital her aunt's at. She strategizes a way to get her out of the hospital under the Feds' noses.

Zeki, somehow having miraculously survived the snake bite during his run through the jungle, is back in Three Fuegos sneaking around from hot spot to hot spot looking for cash, car, cell and clothes. He suffers through memories of his massacred family.

At YO!li's pension de Delores, Dave/Alberto, aka Daverto, aka Dato, and Monica are questioning Delores about Ernesto. She identifies him from a picture and soon learns he's gone to meet his maker rather prematurely, if well-deservedly so. She manages to remember he drove a large, dirty black van. The Feds start searching the hospital parking lot in case he drove it there before getting his gut all carved to crap.

Back at Zuli's whorenet's nest, the girls are getting ready to abandon it. She sneaks out a stash o' cash--a pretty thick packet of pesos and pockets it before Bette comes back to head out with her for the next place John's so thoughtfully provided for his gone girls-on-the-go. Yep, she's got to abandon the place since there's no money now to pay for it.....The two head out to the waiting taxi while a skulking Zeki watches from the shadows a block away. The DEA who're keeping a watchful eye on them zoom in behind right after them.

Once the women drive off, Zeki scrambles up and into the former lovenest he was laying out loads of "lana" for and starts searching for whatever he might be able to find-some clothes, cash, keys, a phone, anything he can use. He remembers when he first got the place and how young and naive (Ha!) Zuli was--no, she played her cards right and he's the worse for wear. Yup, a whorenet's nest and he got stung, big time.

The next day, YO! meets with John and they discuss the fact her aunt's being watched by the DEA/Federales 24/7 in hopes of capturing her. She's devised a way to rescue Rosalba out of the hospital and wants his help. John's a bit wary, considering they've got to keep their heads down, and it won't be any picnic in the park. She insists it's her problem and she'll be the one, if anybody, who'll get all the attention if it goes bad. He knows better but, intrigued, he agrees to listen to her plan.

Meanwhile, Daverto and Moni are doing a bit of wiretapping/eavesdropping and discuss how the stewardesses are probably out looking for whatever jobs they can find, which at this point should be nil, considering they're known to be out on bail for narcotrafficking. Like, too bad, how sad and ain't we glad.....They get a sudden communique that a van matching Unky Ernie's description has been found at the hospital on a 3rd floor ramp. They race off to examine it.

Meanwhile, Zeki is now breaking into the building where the airline's old offices are located. He sneaks upstairs and finds a cash box full of goodies while a suspicious guard goes looking in the wrong direction. He sneaks back onto the street but is discovered and he must race to his car parked a few blocks down. The cops/guards. Dumb and Dumber, don't bother to pull out their guns and shoot the tires flat. NOOoooopers. They yells and waves their armses like he'll suddenly get frightened that they wear badges and flak vests so they obviously mean bidnez and will stop. He drives off and they're left scratching their ..... (*rhymes with walls) and wondering wut jus' hapnd.

At the new apartment the gals are now living in, they complain that nope, they cannot get work even as a garbage collector (well you get the idea...). Olivia looks out the window and spies the DEA's not-so-incognito car. Hmmmm.

John has everyone who's anyone in the immediate gang of guerreros, including the private nurse, listen to Yoli's plan. What a strategist! She's a born natural general, she is! He orders Arley to round up all the men and equipment that YO!'s gonna need.

And, at the new airfield/hangar-site, Oscar is swearing in a new group of loyal guerreros, one by one. Your family or me! (At least, that's the way I remember it.)

At the new (??) narc-ienda, John tells Yoli the operation she's planned is too dangerous and she's to stay out of it, but YO!landa has her guerrera on and wants to be part of the action. (Who do you think wins out in the end?) Just then Vaquero informs John that Zulima's car is ready. OH???? And Zulima's coming there? She raises not just one suspicious eyebrow, but two.

Ok. Zuli's presence at the narc-ienda is now requested. She must put on a hood to keep her from knowing where the new place is. NOT exactly a sign of trust from Johnny at this point, she realizes.

Across town, in the hospital parking ramp, Moni and El Dato de Daverto are examining and discussing all the dried blood. Whose is it? Unky Ernie certainly didn't meet his fate in there. Hmmm. He then examines the cement and notes the camera angles and orders video from that night.

Zuli's driver now notices the DEA's car is tracking them and he can't shake it. A couple of the taxi driver gang members arranges a way to stop dead in traffic and the DEA sedan is eventually blocked from further surveillance. Moni gets word and loses it cuz the guy can't exactly arrest him for a traffic accident. "--Bring that damned taxi driver in when I say so! You follow my orders, fool!!" She drops her clipboard just as a new DEA double "agente" enters and introduces himself as Simpson. Both his Spanish and his English are perfect--as well as his Latino "look", I might add. Viewerville is impressed. (To be precise, he doesn't look like anybody named Simpson that I've ever met. However, his career in telenovelas as the next, tall, dark and handsome Latino lover is probably assured--at least, in Viewerville, he's got nothing to worry about. Come here my pretty!! Cackle-cackle-cackle.....)

At the same time, Estela From Hella is identifying and crying over Ernie's post-autopsied body parts. (Viewerville decides to put lunch off for a while.) The DEA agente, ol' Juannie-on-the-spot, knowing her now to be Ernie's lifelong sleaze-squeeze, takes her in for questioning.

Back at the new narc-ienda Zuli's arrival is imminent. John explains she's going to be questioned because too many of Zeki's recent actions, like hijacking one of the airline's planes with Zuli in tow and his being a double crossing DEA informant just doesn't square with him.

Zuli arrives and she and Yoli chat a bit before the grand interrogation. Zuli tells Yoli she knows John is her new boyfriend and all the gals wish they were in Yoli's shoes. Yoli says she really doesn't want this life, just to have been a pilot and earn her own way in life. Zuli sniffs at that. John sends YO! off to oversee Operation Rosalba. Zuli is nosy about where she's going and why but John nixes her nosy meddling. He takes her off to one of the hotel's bedrooms to question her. Zeki's hijacking one of the airline's planes doesn't make sense. What's the real reason behind it? She should know! Zeki, she lies, was power-hungry. "Uh, yeah? Then why run into the snake infested jungle rather than into the safety of his friendly Federales?" Zuli whines about her loyalty and says John'll have to follow him to the gates of Hell to find out why, she supposes since she has no earthly idea.

Zeki makes it through a road block, on the way to Las Aguilas.

Ok. Private Nurse takes a fake Rosalba past a guard and the guard radio's Daverto. The game is on. An unknown helicopter is trying to land in the vacant parking lot of the hospital. Daverto figures it has to be Lucio, Inc. coming for her. A huge gun battle ensues in which YO!landa takes part. The pilot and a few of the guerreros are shot and killed, but Rosie, Vaquero, Arly and YO! climb in and the copter takes off- with Yolanda in the dead pilot's seat. Arley radios John to give him an update. YO! tells John she knows how to take off and land but she doesn't know how to get around and stay in the air. He instructs her.

We now learn that the pilot actually survived and Moni tells them she needs to question him. John, now at the new airfield, gets the word at the same time and gives orders to off the guy "...before he can open his trap." Oscar's pissed that Yolanda's gotten them in hot water again and tells John as much. John says she's a terrific little soldier for them and he'd better clear the field cuz she's piloting that copter and needs the space.

Back at the hospital, Nurse Carolita shoots a liquid into the pilot's drip meds and he flat-lines just as Moni walks in and Carolita walks out. She realizes finally that Carolita has killed the dude and puts an APB out on her. She races after the woman but the guerreros are watching and run a car into her and block her while she's running through the traffic to the other side of the street, chasing after Carlita. The nurse escapes.

Daverto and another DEA car break through the guerreros' road block. He's trying to keep the helicopter (I think) in mind and somebody's checking the radar or got them in view somehow. YO! eventually lands the 'copter. Oscar immediately screams at her for getting them into another nasty mess that's gotten the Feds breathing down their necks again, and she screams back. John shuts both of them up. Arley gives John the skinny on what happened at the hospital. Suddenly John gets word that the Feds have broken through and are just a few yards out from the airfield. They all pull their guns out and make ready for another shootout at the Narc'O.K. corral.

Im excited to see this mysterious senator and I hope Yolanda meets him and impresses him so much she takes control of the whole thing. They are definitely opening up this world ans its going to get more dangerous.

I feel bad for Yolanda. She didnt ask for this but goddamned if shes not going to use all the tools at her disposal.

Poor Ortega keeps getting shot, hit with vechicles. Bro.

I wonder if Dave and Ortega will follow the van's trail all the way to Zekis fanily? And then somehow tie into Johns own suspicioms. Zulima better watch out because John isnt dumb.

Oh boy, I doubt Oscar is going to be happy about this latest Yolanda esque problem and subsequent (possible) shoot out

***The town Zeki drove to was Las Aguilas. Possibly a hideout to plan his revenge?***

Thanks, Alfredo! I will change that. I definitely am hoping Daverto figures out about Zeki's massacred family.=======Niecie--yeah. I couldn't believe she was shooting at the Feds like that, but again, it was Rosalba who was like the mother she never really had. She's part of the darkside for sure now. How can Dave cross the line over her? He's going to have problems down the road.

Jar--to begin with, how is it you can take a dark narco drama full of cross-fire, treason, betrayals, assassinations, knifings, bombings, murder, body disposals in acid and turn it into something we might see on Comedy Central? Tell, me, how! This is soooo your style and I love it. Thank you and gimme more.

What an episode. However, narcos (so I've heard, at least on TV) are misogynists, so I can't quite take John's adoration over YO!s planning skills, much less the gathered crowd swallowing it whole. John's going to find out he's going to have a hard time controlling her, like he can control the other women who work for them and "serve" them, despite his having said her spunkiness is what he likes about her.

I'm glad Ernesto is dead, but that will make it almost impossible for Zeki to find out what happened to his family. Zuli doesn't know either and she's keeping her mouth shut anyway.

BTW, IMHO--I think Oscar The Grouchy Gay Guy is an exception to the rule. Gay men, in general, hold women in high esteem and form deep, lasting friendships with them, be they heterosexual or lesbian.

Hey, Anita: I'd rather call Oscar The Grousing Grouchy Gay Guy. Naturally suspicious, naturally jealous, naturallly possessive. I figure there are ones all up and down the scale--not that I know much about it, just figuring the odds. : ? )) He is right, though, about Yo! and the way she's come into their lives and havoc has pursued whether all attributable to her or not. The airline hijacking was all Zuli, but again, one of John's personal stable. I think it would be a terrific storyline, also, exploring what would happen if he came across a really strong woman figure that John was not attracted to!!

Anita, according to my CC, Ernesto was given orders to kill Zeki's family if Zuli didn't call him by a certain time....and that's what he did...when Zekii took Zuli by force and made her drive to the airport.

I've never been interested in watching a true narco show (I followed Baja el mismo cielo...not a true narco film)...but this one is turning out to be must see TV. I can't say I'll watch another one because of all the violence and other negative stuff...but I will stick this one out...it's interesting and the characters have grabbed me...for now anyway. .

I have no idea how Yoli redeems herself. Regardless of the reasons she got caught up on the first place...I don't know how she turns it around...and ...Dave and she reconcile....maybe that's just not meant to be. The only option out there is to turn states evidence...but how do you get past all of her voluntary gun wielding....scheming and leadership that appears to be coming ahead of us.

Yoli has made some criminal choices, but at the end of the day she is not gun happy and would leave the violence behind if she could. That's why I'm still rooting for her. Zulima, on the other hand, seems to have gotten over setting up Zeki's family with a butcher and is back to her old tricks of scamming everybody.

Anita, I think one of Oscar's issues is that in his world he's never met a woman who didn't act like a bimbo or try to use sex to control a man. Exhibit A: Zuli. To be this distrusting, Oscar, I'm guessing, was betrayed in a big way in his formative years. I'm also guessing with his uber macho self that he views his gayness as a superior edge over the heteros.

Oh Im loving your guys take on Oscar. And thats another of looking at it: an adavantage over his heterosexual counterparts. He already judged John for risking everything to save Yolanda and then Arley for trying to save Amanda.

He knows John likes Yolanda and that Yolanda isnt dumb and thats a dangerous combination. All women before were mostly bimbos and Zulimas I assume as well.

Hes not above using sex like when he challenged Dave to proof himself but I suspect hed still kill him if he could even before the mole reveal.

Zulima didnt call in time. I sucpect thats wht she was shocked to see how Ernesto had butchered Zekis family. She expected something closer and more humane like a bullet to the head.

Thanks Jardinera. Finally got to see this, although it was an odd way to wrap up a weekend at a Healing Care Ministry conference! Yikes. Talk about contrast!

Loved your title and all the irreverent story-telling and creative monikers. Agree with everything Anita said. You have a puckish way of transforming the grimmest episode into something wacky and hilarious.

I'm like everybody else, both horrified and yet sucked in by the storyline and the characters. Happy Sunday everyone. (alas it's raining here after a gloriously warm and sunny Friday and Saturday.

Anon at 8:34--You, I and all of Viewerville know exactly what happened to Zeki's family. Even Zeki knows that something Zuli set in motion went wrong (she's the one that had the snapshot of them being held). She's absolving herself of all blame. All Zeki wants is to recover his deceased family's remains and find out who did it. That's what I meant by Ernesto being dead will make it harder for him.

The discussions on Oscar are all valid. Far fetched, but maybe he also uses the gay label to keep both men and women in the organization in line.

I agree with those who have surmised that Oscar's most recent problem is that someone, a female, has come between him and John. If it had been another guy, he'd be dead by now. If it had been a bimbo, he'd let it slide. Since it's a woman with a strong spine and leadership abilities, he wants her out of John's life (thus the phone call to DEA to grab her on the way to the hospital).

Yeah, Oscar is right about all the chaos that has ensued since Yo! came into John's life. It has cost them men, money and housing. Most of it wouldn't have occurred if Zuli hadn't been working against Zeki and Yo! on her own. She needs to be unmasked.

JudyB: fom Healing Care Ministry to Dark Narcomania. Definitely a study in contrasts. Maybe we should do a pseudo psychoanalysis of those of us watching this crazy thing after so many sweet, romantic melodramatic morality plays?? Today is sunny after rainless cloudiness yesterday in FTM-FTL, USA. ==============

-- I am surprised, but agreeably so, that Uni has taken this upon themselves. Yes, it has some really hard edges, but basically, we've seen similar brutishness out of the "lighter side" of Uni's tn characters. I guess the type of filming makes it seem more realistic. --IMNSHO. Anyway, I am along for the entire ride and truly enjoying it, even if I don't see Arap Bethke or Colucho as anything to write home about physically. Their parts are nice but just blah parts-is-parts to me. : >))

Finally saw last two episodes. I can't believe how many gun fights we get per episode.

Felt really bad for Zeki when he went back to his house and broke down looking at their family picture. He may be a criminal but he wasn't part of the violent, gun side. Just running the airline.

Oscar hates Yoli because John listens to her and doesn't automatically choose him over her. Plus he does her schemes which cost them men and money and risk their lives. He didn't mind when John used Zuli because he knew John was just using her but John loves Yoli. John and Oscar are in a dangerous profession and there has never been a question that they have each other's backs but Yoli is throwing some doubt into Oscar's mind and that's dangerous for all of them.

Because of my former profession and where I live and th friends I have, I've come into contact with many many gay men and there are some women haters out there but because of the above, I can't say Oscar is one yet.

If we are still in 2014 and Yoli is still working for them two years later, something has to happen that allows Oscar and Yoli to work together. I can't see him going two years with how he feels now, he would have killed her or had someone else do it. I can only imagine that at some point Yoli saves him and it affects him enough to stand her presence.

Simpson, who sooooo doesn't look like a Simpson, could be a good guy for Ortega to fall for so that she gets her mind off Dave. I think she is really beautiful so I think Dave is a fool not to notice but oh well.

Oh I can't wait for Zuli to get hers but I think it will be a long wait with lots of disasters until then.

Carviville: Good couple of storylines simmering there that you've mentioned. I bet you're right about Simpson and Ortega. I still see Oscar angry down the road myself and that may be why she'll probably turn state's evidence down the road. How else to stay with Daverto in the end???

Thanks, Jardinera, for an entertaining recap of a shoot 'em up, blood and guts show. It is so over the top sometimes, I am having a little trouble taking it very seriously.

Major spoiler warning:The other day I mindlessly clicked on the 'Info' button on my remote for this show and it revealed something very major that I really didn't want to know. I was pretty surprised because normally the info provided is a vague one sentence statement like "Poor girl dreams of becoming a pilot and gets mixed up in narco-land" or something about that detailed and not some huge freaking spoiler that hasn't even been hinted of yet and here we are, three weeks in. I am not particularly sensitive to spoilers, but this one was a doozy. So don't look if you don't want to know.

Carolina: Are you saying Spoiler Alert for On Demand or Hulu+ options? Or the daily blurbs on each episodio? I dislike reading the blurb on those sites. I try not to although much of the time for me it isn't possible. Thanks for the heads up.

I think she means the daily blurb but if you look up the summary for the main plot, it is one big spoiler too. On Hulu+ there's the same spoiler, not just for the episode, but the whole series. It's dumb for them to include it since it hasn't happened yet 3 weeks in but it happens.

Jardinera, I think you're right and at some point Yoli is going to be working for Feds. Maybe in the intervening two years something happens and she becomes the double agent because, Yeah, how do she and Dalberto make the happy couple at end. Unless she goes to jail for 10 years and he waits for her!

I'm kinda an idiot about this stuff, but the spoiler that I saw wasn't the daily blurb, or on hulu or On Demand. It must be provided by my cable company. On my remote control there is a button that says 'Info'. When you push it, something pops up on the screen and it gives a little info about the show you are watching. For most shows, it is about the episode, but for novelas it always is about the whole series, not the episode. That's what I saw.

It sounds like Alfredo saw the same thing. He's got more experience than I do, but I've never seen such a giveaway coming from Univision or Televisa like that before.

That poor car does not deserve to have Frauddie's smarmy arse contaminating her upholstery. --Julia

"The tiresome child is returned to us." I agree with Vivi, the rescue was worth it to see Enzo in his wet t-shirt. Yowza that man's got a bod. If I were Chela I'd be pushing Temo in the well every time Enzo drives up.

She is just so stupid. I can't stand it. Doesn't it make you just want to shoot a taser at her? Your just sitting there reading the paper minding your own business. She walks in and starts screeching and you hide the taser next to you and fire. ZZZZZttttt! She flops around on the floor like a fish out of water. That would shut her pie hole for sure! I feel so much better now. - Connie

Gonzo is dead to me.
I want Barb to fall off a cliff. And take Dam & Cam with her.
I want to hit Esteve over the head with a Nerf bat.
If want to duct tape Gardenia's mouth shut.
I want Flor to get different glasses.
I want Curls & Sniffles to stop crying. --Doris

Who on earth is that guy with the horrible hair!!! Dios mio, se parece como se vomito una escoba encima!!!! (He looks like a broom barfed on his head.) -- Anonymous

I want Guy Ecker to look at me with his ojos. I want Fernando Colunga to take me in his arms, embrace me and whisper sweet nothings in my ear. I want William Levy to kiss me, over and over and then start over again." -- Newbie-One-Kanobe